Chapter 15. Deploying to Linux and Mac clients

 

Now that you have an active Linux-based client in your ConfigMgr lab, we can move on to administrative functions such as inventory and package deployment. As shown in figure 15.1, we’ll also spend some time discussing managing clients running Mac OS X. This part of the chapter won’t be hands-on like the sections on Linux, because in order to manage OS X clients, you first have to make many infrastructural changes to your environment, which would take another couple of chapters at least. Also, you have to have a Mac handy; otherwise, the whole process is a bit pointless.

Figure 15.1. More Linux and some OS X for good measure!

We’ll go through how OS X management works, however, and you’ll learn what you need to do in your own environment to support OS X clients.

15.1. Linux client functionality

The client for Linux and UNIX is substantially lighter than the Windows client when it comes to functionality. Many of the powerful features of the Windows client, such as remote access and operating system deployment, aren’t available.

The main functions that the Linux client provides are as follows:

  • Hardware inventory
  • Software inventory
  • Software deployment

Your Linux client is ready to go, so let’s get started.

15.1.1. Working with the Linux client

15.2. Working with Mac OS X